A Race to the Edge (complete)
by BlueOleander123
Summary: This is just a Hiccstrid fluff story, about how their relationship grows while they are living on the Edge. This is set during a very hot Summer in the Archipelago. I own nothing. Characters and places all belong to C. Cowell and Dreamworks. Enjoy.
1. Chapter 1 - Race you to the Edge!

**This is just a Hiccstrid fluff story, about how their relationship grows while they are living on the Edge. I own nothing. Characters and places all belong to C. Cowell and Dreamworks. Enjoy.**

The Edge in the summer was dry and sweltering. As the days grew hotter and longer, the inhabitants of this lonely island would halt work and try to cool off in as many ways as possible. Mapping the islands outside the archipelago had been a breeze in the easy months of spring. They would fly out at mid morning, every day, on the backs of their dragons and find new lands to explore. When they had discovered another island or a chain of isles, the gang would spend up to a few weeks learning all there was to know about that particular place. What kinds of dragons lived there, what they ate, the flora and fauna growing there and as Meatlug only ate rocks, Fishlegs would go searching for new types of stone to feed his bouldery friend.

Their research and discoveries had been growing so swiftly that the six vikings had to build a sturdy hut to house all the scrolls of parchment, growing number of books and specimen samples from their research. The hut was adjoined to Hiccup's cabin. Snotlout had insisted they build it near his hut, however they'd already had to rebuild his cabin multiple times because Hookfang had a nasty habit of igniting and burning the place to the ground. So this suggestion had been voted against by the majority. Although, Hiccup had a strange feeling that the twins had a mind to vote the other way. They wouldn't have minded a few more house fires.

Beside the Room of Scrolls, was Hiccup's place. One look at this building and you would know that it was his. The hut was shaped like your regular viking house however, twirling nobs and pulleys were stitched throughout the place, weaving in and out of windows and sticking out of the roof. The other vikings didn't know what half of these strange gadgets did but it all made sense to Hiccup.

His living quarters were pretty austere, he had a bed and a small outdoor fire pit for cooking but his real efforts had gone into building his workshop— where he was now.

Hiccup hummed a tune as he busied himself in his shop. He had tried to redesign the forge where he had worked for Gobber, back at Berk. However, due to lack of resources it was missing a few major pieces of machinery. Hiccup made do. The hearth was a blaze with hot embers making his shop hot and steamy. Hiccup wiped his brow.

He was working on a tool that he had been inspired by the Dragon Eye they had taken from Dagur. When they were first messing around with it, it had let out a cloud of Zippleback gas. This had given him the idea, he could make a weapon from it. At the present moment he was hammering into shape a handle to hold his weapon. The hot steel sparked with each heavy blow, as his hammer came down hard. The forge was dangerously hot.

After he had finished with the hammer, he placed it on the tool rack and looked down at his work. It was no work of art, but a work in progress. He picked it up with the tongs laying nearby and sunk it into the cooling tank. He loved the satisfying sizzle it made.

He peeked his head out the window and spotted Toothless laying in the shade of his hut. His tongue lolling out in the heat.

"Okay Bud!" called Hiccup "Finished!"

Toothless jumped up and bounded over to his viking companion and gazed at him through the window. He watched as Hiccup wondered around the workshop, putting things back in their place and tidying up the place. Toothless made an impatient whine.

"Okay, okay. Coming" said Hiccup.

He yanked a rope that was hanging from a lever attached to the ceiling and a bucket of water doused the hearth and put it out. Hiccup quickly ducked out before the steam became overwhelming, grabbing his saddle bag along the way.

Hiccup looked out over his balcony at the Edge. None of its other inhabitants were out and about. _Who could blame them_. Thought Hiccup. _It's stifling hot out here._ Hiccup looked up at the sky, shielding his eyes with his right hand. Nothing was in it but the blazing sun beating down on him. Not a cloud in sight to soften the rays.

"Quick Bud. Lets get out of here." Hiccup muttered patting his dragon on the shoulder and mounting his saddle.

Toothless shot up into the air and the suddenly dived down to the shore line.

"Toothle… Wha— What are you doing!" Hiccup tried to right Toothless' tail to head upwards but his dragon seemed set for the water. Within seconds, Toothless and his unsuspecting rider had dived into the sea and were drenched to the ends of their toes. As they resurfaced, Toothless let out a laugh-like gurgle from the back of his throat.

Hiccup laughed. "Well… that was certainly refreshing. I won't lie." He tried to shake a sodden lock of hair from his eyes.

They took off over the island and headed to a small chain of isles west of Dragon's Edge.

During these hot summer days, the vikings had decided to take one day off training a week and used it to relax and cool off. During these days, the inhabitants would usually spend time by themselves. Spending a whole week with these wild, undisciplined vikings was surely exhausting. However, it wasn't uncommon to go for a walk to the small, cool lake in the woods and run into Snotlout or the twins. There were only a few places to go where one could refresh themselves in peace without being bothered by the other Edge inhabitants.

But Hiccup had discovered a new place. He had stumbled across it one day on an early morning flight with Toothless back in late-spring. West of the Edge was a chain of isles. One particular isle had a large peak protruding from the earth, on top of which, was covered in ice in the winter. It was a good lookout point on a clear day and Hiccup had used it to scan the area for an unobstructed place to test out his flight suit. There, he had discovered the peak-top pool.

He had made a mental note to come and use the pool in the summer and that he would tell no one else of his secret cool-off zone.

After flying for about 10 minutes, the isles came into sight. They would usually practice a few tricks and flight maneuvers, however, Hiccup sensed that his reptile friend was too hot to be pushed for tricks today. They flew in a B-line towards the tallest peak. Landing lightly in a clearing just beside the pool, Hiccup dismounted his saddle and hurriedly moved his way toward the pool which was hidden behind a thicket of shrubs. Pushing through the bushes, he was half way through pulling off his tunic when he heard voices ahead, coming from the pool.

"… things could be worse Stormfly."

Astrid.

Hiccup was already retreating into the thicket when Astrid caught sight of him struggling.

"Hiccup!"

"Wha? A-Astrid! H-Hi.." Hiccup spluttered. He felt defeated. "Hi Astrid".

He looked over and saw her tunic and leggings thrown over a nearby rock, her boots and armour lay on the ground. This registered and his eyes automatically flew back to her sitting in nothing but her breast bindings and her swimming trunks. She sat in the pool, with her arms resting stretched out on the rocks behind her. Feeling awkward and not wanting to look at her in this half naked state, he opted to look down at his boot and suddenly found his prosthetic leg very interesting. "I didn't realise anyone else would be…" he trailed off and started making his way back to the clearing. However, his way was blocked by Toothless who was looking at the pool with longing and wouldn't budge. His tongue hung out of his mouth and he panted like a dog.

Astrid had seen the yearning in the dragons eye and said "Hey, there is room for two more. I won't bite." She gestured to the pool around her.

Toothless took her invitation gladly and hurriedly pushed past Hiccup. "Toothless! Your still wearing your…" He dove into the pool head first. "…saddle" said Hiccup as his shoulders fell in defeat. Astrid gave a hearty laugh and splashed Toothless with water.

"Refreshing, isn't it?" She asked the dragon. Toothless replied with a loud purr and continued to swim around the pool like a seal.

Hiccup remained by the bushes, looking at the scene. He wasn't expecting Astrid to be here. Was he glad she was here? Yes. But how was he supposed to act? They were never really together alone, they were always with the others. He ruffed up his hair at the back and moved forward to sit and dangle his legs into the pool. The water was ice cold and bit into him. It was an uncomfortable but a thoroughly refreshing sensation. He could feel Astrid watching him.

 _Say something. Say something._

"So, how did you find this place?" He asked cooly as he ruffled his hair again. Toothless swam by unaware of the awkward exchange the two teenagers were having.

"Oh, you know, just was down at the beach," she gestured her thumb down to the shore line. "and Stormfly and I …" She stopped. "Why are you so wet?" She nodded toward his clothes which were still soaked from Toothless' little stunt at the Edge. She noticed how his wet tunic and pants stuck to his slim figure, emphasising certain spots, particularly his crotch. Her eyes darted down to the water.

"Oh this?" he laughed, eying Toothless menacingly in a very un-Hiccup-ish manner. "This is Toothless' idea of cooling down."

"Uh-huh…" she said, unconvinced. "Anyway, yeah, Stormfly and I decided to explore the Isle and I guess we just came across this! The water is cooler up here than anywhere on Dragon's Edge" She said matter-of-factly. "…or on Berk for that matter." She screwed up her face as if trying to think of a cooler, more refreshing spot. Hiccup half smiled. He was thrilled that she was here but also not so thrilled she had found his secret spot.

Hiccup quickly jumped up and removed his sodden pants. Luckily he had been wearing suitable underclothes. He pulled his tunic over his head and threw it over a branch to dry off. Astrid looked up and Hiccup thought he saw an expression of surprise in Astrid's face as her eyes darted up to his shoulders and back down to his knees. It's not as though his body had changed that much over the last few years but he had grown almost a foot taller and his work at the forge had definitely assisted him in growing some muscle tone.

He raised his eyebrows and she went on, talking down to the water now. "I mean, it's not that the lake at the Edge is bad, I love it, but it's so hard to have it to yourself."

Hiccup hesitated. "You know, Toothless and I can come back later if you…"

"No! I didn't mean that." She recovered. "Your all right. It's Snotlout and the others… they can be so…" She struggled looking for a word.

"Irritating? Immature? Tiresome?" Hiccup suggested only a few of the things that the other vikings were.

"Well… Yeah. I was going to go for something a bit more subtle but your description pretty much sums it up." She laughed.

Hiccup sat back down by the waters edge and unbuckled his prosthetic, slowly taking it off. He did this all under the water so Astrid wouldn't have to see his ugly, burnt flesh. After placing his leg by the bushes he slid down into the pool to join Astrid and the dragons.

He gasped as lowered himself down. The cold wrapped around him, cooling every inch of his baking skin. As the water reached his chest, the air in his lungs even seemed to chill. There were a few seconds when he considered jumping out and thawing out but then his body temperature adjusted and he let out a relaxing "Ahh."

"There you go! Better?" asked Astrid with a smirk as she lay her head back on the rock behind her.

"Great" Hiccup said shortly.

They sat for a minute, saying nothing. It was nice to know that Astrid didn't mind him interfering with her own free time and that she didn't think he was irritating, immature or tiresome. It seemed that out of the five other vikings on Dragon's Edge, Astrid was the one he had most in common with and they seemed to be on the same level… intellectually at least. Had she known he had had a huge crush on her for years? He doubted it. He knew she cared for him, but in a friendly sort of way. She had treated him with a few small kisses here and there when they were younger but, that had been years ago. They were older now.

He blushed, thinking about those kisses, and here she was, right in front of him wearing nothing but her underclothes. She had her head resting on a rock behind her with her eyes closed, soaking up the sun. Hiccup took the chance to drink up her appearance. She had grown softer features as she got older, which was highly feminine and much to Hiccup's liking. Her sun coloured hair was out of her usual braid and pulled over her shoulder. The tips of it dangling in the water and a few bits sticking to her neck and chest which had evidently been covered in sweat due to the heat of the day. His eyes lowered to her chest region which had, Hiccup had noted, grown in most recent years, which was… also to Hiccup's liking. Hiccup thanked the gods that she could not see under the water b/c there was something down there that had just risen in his trunks.

She looked up suddenly and he darted his eyes to where the dragons now swam, splashing and gurgling to one another. "It's mighty hot. Odin's eye is shining brighter than any other day this summer." She looked at him. "What had you been up to before you came here? You looked hot when you arrived." She stopped and reconsidered what she had just said, with a short look of panic she recovered by saying "You know, temperature hot… not…" She trailed off.

Hiccup liked to know he was making her nervous but tried to comfort her by acting like he wasn't phased. "Yeah I had been working at the shop… on some stuff."

"Ooft! Wouldn't want to be working in there on a day like this." She gestured towards the sun.

At that same moment, Toothless bounded over to Hiccup and playfully body tackled him into the water with a huge splash. "Toothle—."

Astrid watched half amused as the boy and the reptile wrestled in the water. Hiccup shoved his dragon into the water with surprising strength and they continued to splash and play fight. _Boys._ She thought. It was at that moment that Toothless swam up to Astrid and licked her from elbow to nose. "Urghh!" She jumped up and glared at the two with annoyance.

Hiccup noticed that she wasn't having fun. "Woah, easy there, Bud. We are lucky to be allowed to stay here with Astrid because she doesn't think we are muttonheads. We don't want her to think otherwise, do we?"

Toothless' ears and wigs flattened as he was being scolded.

"You're okay. Go give Stormfly some company, will you?" He suggested, patting him on the nose.

He turned to Astrid who was now trying to rub the dragon saliva off her skin and failing miserably. Hiccup approached her. He had had much experience with getting dragon saliva off before.

"Here." He grabbed her arm and pulled her over to him where the water was deepest. She tried to protest but he said "Trust me. This has happened to me loads of times. I've worked out the only way to get it off is to err… soak it." He sunk into the water with her, demonstrating to her how it's done. She copied, still rubbing her arms and neck. Hiccup held her wrists to her sides "Stop moving. Let it soak"

"Put a leash on your dragon, Hiccup, for Odin's sake." said Astrid, pointedly. Yet she steadied. "Uhm?" Astrid looked down at Hiccup holding her wrists.

"Oh! S-Sorry." said Hiccup, cheeks turning pink and quickly releasing his grasp. His nervousness returned to him in a heartbeat.

"It's okay." she said, pulling her arms away anyway. Yet she didn't move back to her spot by the rock. She stayed standing in front of him. "So… The others were thinking about having a camp out on the beach tonight, since it will be a warm evening. That could be fun."

Recovering a bit from his close contact with Astrid, Hiccup mused "Yeah, I guess. It could be fun."

"It will be! We haven't done anything fun in ages. Its always work, work, work around here, with you in charge."

"What?! Who put me in charge?

"You just are, Hiccup. You ran the academy, and you're usually right about most things. People follow you."

"Well I'm flattered, Astrid. But I can't think whats better though; spending all day with those muttonheads six days a week or one whole night with them." Hiccup's sarcasm was sewn all through his tone. It made Astrid laugh. Hiccup smiled, knowing he had just made her laugh. He looked down at her.

"Oh hey! You can try wipe off that dragon saliva now. Should wash right off." He made an effort not to touch her this time by crossing his arms over his chest. She started wiping her hands down her arm and up her neck. Then she dived deep into the water until it seemed Hiccup was alone with the dragons. He looked around the water, searching for a sign of her. Something tickled is toes and then his rib cage and Hiccup twisted in the water to get away. He was ticklish. "Ahh" he squirmed.

Astrid surfaced a little way away, wiping her face clean and then flashing Hiccup a sneaky smile. "Your dragon-saliva-ridding method works a treat."

"I know." said Hiccup very un-modestly while ruffing up the back of his hair.

"I see you are a ticklish little girl."

"Am not!" said Hiccup standing up straight to prove his point.

"You are. Don't lie." she said as she swam closer, arming herself with wiggling fingers.

Hiccup backed up. "Don't come near me. I'm warning… I-I'll.. I'll…"

"You'll what? Stutter at me, Haddock?" She smiled cheekily. Then she let all her forces loose on him, poking him all over and laughing as he danced away from her and hid his bare ribs with his arms. He grabbed his prosthetic leg from the side of the pool and tried to use it as a shield against her.

"Arhh, A-Astrid! Please! Okay. I-I'm getting out! I'm getting out!"

Astrid lowered her arms. "Good. Race you to the edge!" and before he knew it she had clambered out of the pool and gathered her things and was already climbing atop Stormfly.

"Wha—." Hiccup whistled to Toothless who was just as confused as he was with his friends' departure. "Not fair!" Hiccup called to Astrid who was throwing on her tunic. "You have two legs!" He swiftly buckled his prosthetic back on and grabbed his things.

"You aren't really using the disability card on me are you, Haddock?" And with that she took off heading East for the Edge.

"C'mon bud! We're not losing today." Toothless took it as a very serious challenge. Hiccup mounted his saddle and they shot up into the air, following in Astrid's wake.


	2. Chapter 2 - The Beach

**Continuing from the first chapter... This one is a short one.**

 **So happy about the response and all the support I got after posting the first chapter, so this ones for you guys!**

The two dragons and their riders were speeding over the seas of the archipelago. Odin's eye was still beating down hot rays of sun. Hiccup had never enjoyed competitive sports much but he didn't mind a small, playful race between two friends. Particularly if it meant he got to spend time with Astrid.

"C'mon girl, lets give those boys a good fight. We can beat them." Astrid encouraged. Although she had never won against Hiccup and his Night Fury before, she couldn't help but hope her head start might at least give her and Stormfly a chance. "Stormfly! Down!"

Astrid and Stormfly flew down to the water where the wind was less blowy. Hiccup followed suit. The two dragons flew over the sea, kicking up the water as they went. Astrid was a few yards ahead of Hiccup and she quickly looked over her shoulder to see how far he was from her. Hiccup, still topless, had a determined expression on his face as he leaned low over his dragon, who's expression reflected his rider's.

"Go Stormfly! Go!" She urged the dragon, knowing their opponent was gathering speed.

Then she heard it.

The sound of wind whistling over Toothless' scales, as he started to reach full speed, reached her ears. She was done. It was over. A black blur spiraled overhead and overtook her and her dragon.

She heard Hiccup's laughter and he called "Eat my dust, Astrid!"

"Uh!"

They weaved in and out of a gathering of rock stacks which protruded from the waters below. Toothless maneuvered around these with such grace and effortlessness, Astrid envied them. Hiccup flew with style, she was not going to lie.

Hiccup saw Dragon's Edge up ahead, growing bigger, and fast. He scouted for a good place to land and decided on the East Beach which was closest. He looked back and smirked as he saw Astrid and Stormfly, a mere speck in the distance.

"Okay Bud, we'll head down now." Toothless lazily twisted down through the air and landed lightly on the sand a moment later. Hiccup jumped off and quickly fixed the buckle on his prosthetic which he had twisted up while rushing to put it on before the race started. As Astrid approached, Hiccup casually leaned against Toothless, crossed his arms over his chest and rested his right leg up by his knee — A victor's stance.

Astrid jumped off her dragon before she had even landed and ran at Hiccup aiming punches at him. She had a blazing look in her eye.

"Wha—?" Hiccup parried against her.

"You didn't even try to make it fair, Hiccup!"

"You had a pretty hefty head start. I didn't think we were playing fair!"

"Ughh!" She punched his shoulder and then aimed a wild kick at his prosthetic. "OUCH" Her bare foot had collided with the metal with a loud 'thunk'. She jumped back hopping a bit and awkwardly reaching for her toe.

"Oh gods! Are you okay?"

"Hiccup! For Odin's sake!"

"Hey! You kicked me!" Hiccup tried to take the defensive, but he did feel bad. He watched as she stepped back and walked — more like limped — through the sand to reach Stormfly. She was in a rage. She started to climb on. Hiccup, suddenly realising she was trying to flee the scene, ran after her and gently grabbed her arm.

"Hey! I'm so sorry Astrid." He said it as sincerely as he could, even though her angry outburst almost amused him. "Please don't leave. I'll feel so bad if you leave me in this state." He gestured toward her. She was furious but she considered him nonetheless. "Please, we can rematch tomorrow or something. I don't know. Just climb back down."

She glared at him and looked Stormfly in the eye as if to ask her opinion. "No rematch, I don't want to put Stormfly through anymore… ordeals. And only if you swear to tell no one the outcome of that race!" He nodded. Her eyes grew into slits then she jumped on the sand and pushed past Hiccup. He covertly smiled to himself and followed to where she had seated herself on the beach. He plonked himself down next to her in the sand and started to realise how hot it was still.

She was holding her toe. "I'm really sorry." said Hiccup. She disregarded this.

"Can you put some clothes on or something Hiccup?" she hissed at him. He was taken aback.

"Clothes? Err, yeah I guess."

He stood back up and headed to his dragon and his saddle bag. Toothless was presently trying to console Stormfly, who seemed to be as fiery as Astrid about losing the race. Hiccup sighed. This had all gone wrong. What happened to the friendly race between two friends? He guessed he had always known that Astrid was competitive. He didn't realise she was going to be so bitter about losing though. Toothless and Hiccup shared a look that said _you won't believe what I'm dealing with._ And Hiccup pulled his clothes out of his saddlebag. He threw them on and then took a large gulp from his water skin. He wiped his brow and hesitantly went back to where Astrid was sitting.

He knelt beside her. "Is that okay?" he nodded to her toe, preparing for another outburst. He offered her the canteen, she took a sip and gave it back.

"I'll live." she said. She had seemed to have calmed down a bit in his absence. She chuckled a bit then sighed. "Sorry I got so mad." She looked a bit embarrassed.

Hiccup was confused. One minute she was as fired up as a monstrous nightmare and now she is apologising and laughing at her furious blow up? One thing was for sure; girls belonged to the _mystery class_. However, he picked up her change of mood and went with it.

"It's okay. It was really unfair of me to—"

"Save it, Hiccup." She held up her hand and Hiccup hushed up. She smiled side ways at him.

"But" she said, with a dramatic pause. "What was that little pose you were doing when I landed on the beach, hm?" She laughed, mockingly.

"What? That was my victor's stance!" Hiccup reached up his arms and flexed them in a god-like manner to demonstrate. Astrid burst into laughter.

"Oh please. Put those away!" She reached up and attempted to pull his arms down from his ridiculous pose.

"No. I think I like it like this." He liked her laughing.

"Hiccup!" Astrid complained playfully. She pulled at is bicep.

"Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, the almighty, conquering champion!" He imitated a crowed cheering while Astrid continued to pull at his arms. She was very strong. He resisted her.

It began to turn into some sort of game. _A weird game._ Hiccup thought, but he didn't mind as long as she didn't stay mad at him. They were friends after all.

" _Hic-cup_!" She jumped up on him, now using her entire body weight to push his arms down. He liked her climbing all over him. His arms were starting to give in and they were both laughing and grunting with effort.

He finally gave in to her and his arms fell. She fell too, not expecting the sudden release and pinned him back onto the sand.

"Ha! I'm still stronger than you, Haddock." She was sitting on his chest and had both his arms down on either side of his head, pinning him there. They both were puffing with exhaustion. He quirked an eyebrow.

"I don't know about that, Astrid." And with a sudden jolt of his hips, he unbalanced her, causing her to fall onto the sand beside him. He rolled over and swiftly grabbed her wrists in an attempt to pin her down as she had done to him. She struggled beneath him, she was certainly no match for Hiccup these days. She squirmed trying to break his hold on her, but her held her fast. He revelled in his second victory of the day. She slowly stopped fighting and admitted defeat. She wasn't mad this time, she did seem surprised though.

She looked up at him. "Beaten by, Hiccup Haddock…" She said, obviously remembering him as a small boy with, skinny arms and no real clue about how to fight.

He looked down at her and she stared into his eyes for a moment.

He suddenly had an urge.

He wanted to lean down and kiss her. He wanted to make her his. Their breathing was heavy and their clammy bodies were pressing together.

"Hiccup." she said as he started leaning closer to her face. "Hiccup, I—." She turned her head to the side, rejecting his almost-kiss.

Hiccup felt crushed. "Oh."

He quickly got off her and awkwardly stood up, holding out his hand to help her up. She took it but tried to avoid his gaze. She busied herself by sweeping the sand off her knees and legs.

Hiccup ruffed up the back of his hair awkwardly. "Err."

She looked up at him and pulled her hair over her shoulder nervously. "I'll be seeing you, Hiccup." And with that, she ran over to Stormfly and then she was gone.

Hiccup stood on the beach and cursed himself. _Of course! We are just friends! How could I have been so stupid as to try that?!_ He kicked the sand in frustration.

"C'mon Bud. Lets go home and find some shade."


	3. Chapter 3 - The Beach Again

Hiccup parted ways with Toothless when they reached the clubhouse. Hiccup needed time to think and clear his head. He watched, as his dragon wondered off to the stables, probably looking for some of the other dragons to socialise with. Hiccup turned and headed to his cabin, shoulders slouched.

He felt bad. How was he ever going to be able to face her again? He had liked her for years, but he didn't think she knew that. Hiccup had prided himself on the facade he had built to hide these feelings from her. He had never wanted to complicate things because, their friendship was way too precious to him.

She obviously wanted to remain friends too as she had clearly declined his attempt to kiss her. _Since when did I even want to kiss her?_ He had not even thought about it until… Hiccup thought about that feeling he'd had, back on the beach. He remembered that sudden urge to kiss her and to… to _own_ her. His eyebrows furrowed together as he reflected on this. He had always wanted to kiss her, it's not like he had never dreamt of kissing her. Sometimes when he was awake in bed he would think about her. Visualise her. Even thinking about it now made his cheeks grow warm and and he clenched his fists.

But to kiss her, to actually _kiss_ her, with tongues and everything, he had surprised himself when he had been so bold as to try.

It was mid afternoon, still stifling hot. Hiccup kicked a pebble across the decking as he continued past the other vikings homes. They still seemed to be out on the island somewhere. Nothing stirred. The walk to his hut was not too far. He glanced down at Astrid's place as he walked by. It seemed quiet and empty. Door closed. Stormfly was not in her pen. Astrid obviously hadn't gone home. He tried to stop thinking about her but it was impossible.

He climbed the steps up to his hut and kicked the door open. Hiccup headed straight for his bed and collapsed onto the furs. His hut had stone floors so his room was a cool relief from the blazing heat outside. He had draped some skins over the windows so the space was cast in a dim light.

Hiccup's mind was still buzzing. His thoughts always on Astrid and kisses.

He had never needed kisses from her before. But all of a sudden, Hiccup felt as if he _needed_ those kisses. The urge to _really_ kiss her had become so strong, since he left the beach, that he could think of nothing else. He thought about this. Maybe it was because she had denied him what he wanted. Was it a natural instinct to want it, even more, now he had been refused? Hiccup decided this must be the case.

 _It doesn't matter anyway._ He thought, almost bitterly. _She rejected my kiss. She doesn't want to kiss me._

A debate had started in his mind. One side was trying to be positive and hopeful but the other side was utterly negative and made him very self conscious. He thought about all the kisses he had received from Astrid in the past. These kisses had made him absently optimistic that maybe she liked him too. She was very willing, back then, to give him a kiss, which was odd because he was the most un-viking boy on Berk. He was a weak, awkward, oddball and yet she had shown him affection (which, he recalled, involved many painful punches on the arm). And _now,_ his father considered him 'The Pride of Berk!', he was a skilled dragon rider, he had grown into a young viking man and could handle an axe okay. He thought he was… alright and that viking girls liked that sort of… thing. Yet, now she wasn't interested in him?

Insecurity started to take over him. He rolled onto his back and looked up at the ceiling of his hut. _Maybe those were just pity kisses._ He thought miserably. Maybe she just felt sorry for him and felt like giving him a friendly, charitable kiss. It made sense, he had always seemed surprised to receive those kisses and felt he didn't deserve her.

 _It wasn't fair._ He thought. She was able to kiss him whenever she felt like it, and now he finally tried to return a kiss, she didn't let him. This thought made him feel a mixture of emotions. He felt, sad for being rejected and annoyed for not getting his way, yet guilty that he was feeling like this towards Astrid, who had always been a true and loyal friend. His best friend.

They were _friends_. Hiccup valued their friendship more than his teenage urge to get intimate with her. He didn't want to complicate things incase something went wrong and they couldn't be friends anymore. He didn't know what he would do if he didn't have Astrid to talk to, or train with, or to be there to back him up when he was trying to knock some sense into the other viking teenagers. These thoughts confirmed it. He just had to stop thinking about Astrid like that. It would be hard, but he just had to do it.

Hiccup sighed. All the things that had happened today had made him exhausted. His body was physically tired from working in the shop, and being out in the sun and having his wrestle with Astrid on the beach. And his mind was equally as tired from the ongoing debate he was having with himself about said viking girl.

The exhaustion overtook him and Hiccup dosed off.

When he awoke, it was dusk. His hut was very dark and he heard footsteps heading up the steps to his cabin. Below, he heard the others chatting and laughing as they headed down the path to the bay.

There was a soft knock on the door. _Oh, please don't be Astrid. Please._ He was not ready to face her yet.

"Hiccup?" came Fishlegs' voice, timidly. Hiccup sighed in relief, yet didn't answer. He wanted to keep sleeping. There was another knock.

"C'mon, Fishlegs! He's probably out doing something lame, like always." Hiccup heard Snotlout call out. "Astrid said she told him about tonight, so he'll come when he gets back!"

Hiccup listened as he heard Fishlegs descend the steps, he buried his face in the furs and fell into another deep slumber.

Astrid looked back at Fishlegs descending Hiccup's steps alone. Fishlegs shrugged and joined up with the group and the dragons. Astrid didn't want to look too worried so she quickly turned back and joined the conversation with the others.

They were all discussing dragon racing tactics and manoeuvres. A topic that Astrid really enjoyed, so she forgot about Hiccup for a minute and immersed herself in the conversation as they trudged down to the bay. They were carrying their rolled up skins over their shoulders. The dragons carried their dinner and the twins were wearing the cooking pots as helmets.

"…Well, Hiccup may be the fastest but Hookfang and I are the strongest and most cunning" bragged Snotlout. Astrid gave a snort of laughter.

"You!? Cunning?" She mocked. "Stormfly and I are the most cunning!" The others made agreeing tones and nodded. Snotlout looked stunned that they all agreed with her and started arguing with them about his skills. Astrid was never good at finding the sheep during the dragon races but she was good at intercepting sheep and stealing them from the other team. A skill she prided herself on.

The others started squabbling on about whom was the best at what and why. They were always bickering, it was during these times that Astrid would seek out Hiccup who was always calm and easy to be around. She sighed as she thought of him.

The time she had spent with him earlier that day had been fun. She wished she hadn't ruined it all. She had hoped that she could make up for bailing on him today by seeing him tonight but… he didn't come. The knowledge that Hiccup was going to be there had made the idea of spending the night with these wrangling vikings manageable. She could put up with them when he was around to calm her. Had he forgotten? Was he avoiding her? She hoped he wasn't. She felt like such a coward leaving him, like that, on the beach. Astrid liked to think that she was a strong viking girl who had no fears and didn't run away from anything. But she did. She just ran away.

She sighed once more. Stormfly, who was stalking along beside her, gave her a concerned look, knowing her rider was wrapped up in some sort of inner turmoil.

"I'm okay." Astrid mouthed to her dragon, who nuzzled her shoulder.

 _It's no big deal._ She thought. _Nothing even happened_.

Astrid supposed she would have to spend the night without him and decided she would just have to seek him out tomorrow and talk to him.

It was dark outside when Hiccup woke. Toothless had come in and was nudging his shoulder with his face.

"Hey, Bud." Hiccup said sleepily as he stretched and scratched the back of his head. Hiccup peeked through the skins over his window and looked out at the cloudless night. "Hm its getting late already. Sorry if you have been waiting for me."

Toothless made a kind gurgle that meant he didn't mind. Hiccup noticed that someone had taken off his saddle. He got up and headed to a sack hanging in the corner. It was filled with meat. "I'm starving, how about you?" He pulled out a couple of trout for Toothless, who caught them in his mouth and downed them in one bite, and pulled out a leg of mutton for himself.

"Lets go." They headed outside to his outdoor fire pit and Toothless ignited it. "thanks" Hiccup murmured as he started cooking the leg over the flames. He looked out over the edge of of his balcony in the direction on the bay. There was a golden haze, shining over the trees from a bonfire, reminding Hiccup that the others were waiting for him.

"Guess we should go down to the beach then, huh?"

Toothless seemed to like this suggestion, as he jumped around excitedly and gave Hiccup his happy toothless grin. Hiccup laughed. "Keen for a camp out, hey? Okay, I'll get some stuff."

Hiccup stepped back inside and gathered up his sleeping skins and a fur, incase it got cold. He changed into some clean clothes and headed back out to where Toothless was waiting for him. Hiccup grabbed his mutton leg and doused the fire with a bucket of water and they set off down to the bay.

They walked in silence, Hiccup munching on his mutton leg. He hadn't eaten since earlier that morning. By the look of the stars, it was late, but not midnight yet. The gravelly path crunched underfoot as they starting making their way through the undergrowth down to the beach. He became a bit nervous when he remembered he was about to see Astrid. But reminded himself, they were just going to be friends now, so she shouldn't make him nervous.

As he made his way down the path with Toothless, he heard voices growing in the distance and could smell the salty aroma of a seaside wood fire. As he reached the sand, he stopped and took off his boot and put it in his saddle bag. The sand under his toes was cold but welcoming. It dribbled over his foot with each step. He took a deep breath in as he felt the freedom of it. As he rounded the bend, into the bay, the others came into sight.

"Ahh! Here he is!" shouted Snotlout.

Hiccup waved and Toothless bounded ahead to greet everyone and join the other dragons.

The gang had set up in a circle around a great big fire. They had obviously finished eating but the smell of salted pork and cooked salmon remained lingering in the air.

Hiccup greeted everyone when he reached the fire. He rolled out his yak skin and plonked himself down between Snotlout, who was leaning against Hookfang, and the twins, who had built make-shift thrones out of sand and were sitting in them. Tuffnut looked down upon him. "Nice of you to join the party."

Hiccup said nothing, but looked up towards Astrid who sat on the other side of the fire on her rolled out yak skin. She too was looking at him, but then again so was everyone else, so it probably meant nothing. He gnawed the rest of the meat off his mutton leg and tossed the bone into the flames.

"So?" said Snotlout expectantly. "Where have you been?"

Hiccup mumbled something about sleeping, which was true but the others gave each other doubtful looks. The bone in the fire gave a satisfying crack.

"Whatever." Snotlout said, because he genuinely didn't care. "Here!" He threw Hiccup something which he caught in one hand. Hiccup looked down at a regular, old water skin.

"I'm not thirsty." He said, trying to hand it back.

"It's not water, stupid. Its mead I stole from the Meade Hall when we were last on Berk. I've been saving it." Snotlout said proudly. "Drink." he nodded to the skin.

Hiccup drank, and tried not to pull a face when he swallowed. He had never drank mead before. He gave himself away when he started having a coughing fit and handed the skin back to Snotlout, who smirked. Ruffnut and Tuffnut outwardly laughed at him and even Fishlegs joined in. "Rookie…" Ruff said, shaking her head. Hiccup even caught Astrid smiling.

Hiccup joined in and laughed at himself too and grinned.

"So, what's been happening? What did I miss out on?"

"Oh nothing, just a whole bunch of bickering and arguing, like you anticipated." Astrid called across the flames to Hiccup.

"Hey! We are right here, you know." said Snotlout, in a mock hurt voice.

"We were planning on going swimming soon." Tuff said.

"What, right now? In the dark?" asked Hiccup.

"Yeah?" said Snotlout. "We are Vikings, Hiccup, we do what we want."

"Need some more of that mead, though, before we go." said Tuffnut, nodding to the skin. The mead was passed around the circle once more and Snotlout finished it off, squeezing every last drop into his mouth from a height. The others groaned, and complained.

"Don't worry! I have more!" Snotlout exclaimed dramatically as he held up another couple of skins in the air and the group cheered rowdily. Hiccup realised that they'd clearly had more to drink than he had first thought. Even Astrid joined in the cheering. She looked like she was in a good mood, and that put Hiccup in a good mood. The vikings all stripped to their underclothes and ran down to the shore where the water lapped smoothly against the sand at the waters edge. The skin of mead was continuously passed around and Hiccup had another gulp. Some of the dragons joined while some sat and watched on the sand.

Hiccup watched as Snotlout picked up Ruffnut and dragged her into the water while she laughed and lashed about. Everyone was whooping and laughing and it was a jolly scene to behold. Hiccup ran into the water and dived into the sea. He felt the water drag over his prosthetic leg but he didn't care. He didn't feel that comfortable taking it off in front of these unpredictable teenagers anyway. They would probably steal and hide it or something stupid. He resurfaced and shook his head to get his hair out of his eyes. There was a lot of splashing in the darkness and screams from the girls as the boys pinched their feet under the black water. The young viking splashed around for a while and played with the dragons who were proving to be very good swimmers. The mead continued around and it reached Hiccup another couple of times before he handed it to someone else. They weren't really doing anything in particular, but Hiccup was happy. He felt a bit childish, playing and paddling around in the sea, but he was glad he had come and wasn't missing out. Ruff had climbed onto Snotlout's shoulders and he threw her off with a large splash. She emerged laughing and splashing him with water.

The golden light from the fire was sparkling on the waters surface, making his friends glow in a gleaming haze. It was unlike anything he had ever seen before. Even Snotlout looked beautiful. He then saw Astrid. She was laughing at Fishlegs, who swore he felt something touch his feet too, and was tiptoeing around skeptically. Her skin was bronze and her eyes glimmered amber in the firelight. All the blue washed out of them. She looked unworldly, like a living Freya on earth. She was ducked in the water up to her collar bones so she looked naked and the tips of her wet hair were stuck to her chest leading into her slight cleavage.

Hiccup's thoughts were interrupted by Tuffnut who shoved the skin of mead into Hiccup's chest. He gave Hiccup a knowing look and then quirked an eyebrow at Astrid and then at Hiccup. Hiccup said nothing but gave a guilty look at Tuff and they both grinned. Hiccup took another great swig of the mead and swam over to the others with Tuff. Toothless swam by, being chased by Hookfang, who was like a tremendous boat on the water. Hiccup waded to where Astrid was and offered her the skin of mead.

"Oh gods, I don't even like this stuff. But it's so… exciting." she said and she hiccupped. She took a swig anyway and didn't even try to hold back the cringe that followed. Hiccup laughed as she pulled a face and took another sip. Hiccup thought she looked cute.

"Hey, slow down there, As. You've seen what happens to people if they get too drunk at the Meade Hall." Hiccup had witnessed many rowdy nights in the Meade Hall over that last few years. When they were younger, they had to leave the hall at mid evening. But in more recent years they had been deemed old enough to hang around and watch the adults get drunk. Vikings got wild when they drank and it seemed that these Berkian teenagers were no exception.

Hiccup floated on his back and looked up at the skies above them. They were magnificent, like the heavens had opened up for them. Astrid copied him and they both floated, arms and legs outstretched, looking at the stars. Hiccup forgot about everything. He suddenly was very aware of every sensation he was experiencing. He felt the warm water lapping around his body, as he bobbed on the surface. He listened to everything go in and out of hearing as his ears went under and out of the water, with the gentle waves. He breathed in the salty, stiff air around him then looked up to see the sky whirring around slightly. Does it usually do that?

Hiccup's outstretched hand touched Astrid's and he quickly withdrew it in a flash, as if he had been electrocuted, and returned to an upright position. She did too. They looked at each other. She opened her mouth as if to say something but at that moment Snotlout splashed his way over to them and said; "Stop hogging the mead you two!" and snatched the skin from Astrid's other hand. Hiccup and Astrid shared a look and tried not to laugh.

"You take it, I've had enough anyway." said Astrid who started heading to the shore. She turned back to Hiccup and pulled his arm "Want to come back with me?" He nodded. He couldn't help but admire her when she stepped out of the water and onto the sand. The water dripped down her glorious body and she wrung out her hair and threw it over her shoulder so it hung down her slender back.

Now that they were out of the water, they realised that the night air had become a bit brisk. They both started shivering. She giggled. "You look c-cold." She wrapped an arm around his body to try remedy this.

"Just a-a bit." Hiccup stammered. "Let's g-go to the fire and w-warm up."

He put an arm over her shoulder and they started walking back to the camp. A couple of wolf whistles were being sent their way from the wild vikings in the water. Both Astrid and Hiccup blushed silently to themselves but didn't say a word.


	4. Chapter 4 - To Valhalla and Back

The two young vikings reached the fire. Astrid, pulled away from Hiccup and went to her yak skin on the other side of the fire pit. Hiccup felt a small pang of sadness when she let go of him and left him. Then, he had to remind himself they were friends and she obviously wanted her space. So Hiccup turned and started searching for some more wood to throw on the fire. He found a pile a short distance away that the others must have gathered earlier. He crouched and picked up the whole armful and carried it over, back to camp.

When he returned, he found Astrid sitting on her skin, which had been dragged over to where Hiccup had put his own. She beamed up at him and he inwardly took note of how adorable she was. Although, he knew he could never mention that to her or he'd get a beating, for sure.

Astrid watched quietly from her yak skin as Hiccup fed the flames with more wood. She was still shivering and wet all over. When he was done with the fire, he wondered over to his saddle bag and pulled out the fur.

"Here." Hiccup said, handing it to her. She took it gladly and then looked up at him, concerned.

"But, what about you?"

"I'll be okay."

"But you are just as cold as I am!" she insisted. "Here, we can share." She held the fur out wide to invite him to join.

"You sure?" He asked. He didn't want to invade her personal space. He had been doing that a lot lately, it seems.

She rolled her eyes. "Get down here, or I will hurt you." She said seriously.

So Hiccup and Astrid sat, together, with the fur wrapped around them, their backs to the fire, and eyes out over the sea. Hiccup could only just make out the inebriated teenagers and their dragons still splashing around in the waters below. Their laughter and chatter echoed across the sand and around the bay. Hiccup thought about how very alone they were out here. He pictured the archipelago, and how, right now, everything was quiet, sleeping and dormant, for miles around. And yet, in this one spot, there was _life._

The conversation between Hiccup and Astrid flowed without thought. They talked for what felt like hours. They spoke about Berk, and dragons. Hiccup talked about his dad, and Astrid told stories about her father, when she was a vikling. These were stories, Hiccup felt, she had never shared before. They talked about mead and speculated where Alvin the Treacherous was, these days. It was so easy and Hiccup felt that what ever had happened between them the day before, was in the past now and could be forgotten.

Below, in the water, Hiccup could hear the others complaining that all the mead had run out. Hiccup and Astrid watched as Snotlout and Tuffnut started riding the dragons like water horses. It started a game of water racing which was very entertaining for the two vikings on the shore.

Astrid, smiling, sighed and leant back on the yak skins. Hiccup copied her, so they were laying side by side, looking up at the sky. Hiccup's head had steadied now, and the stars no longer whirred around (which he thanked the Gods for).

"So…" He said, trying to find the words. "I've been meaning to thank you."

Astrid turned on her side and leaned on her arm to look at him, eyebrow quirked. "What for?"

"Well, for coming out here. You know, to 'The Great Beyond'." he said slowly. "I know you had a mind to join the Berk Guard, which you would have been so good at too…"

"Hiccup, the Berk Guard was… well, it was just a back up plan." she confessed, looking down at the sand. "I had always, sort of, hoped that maybe, you would come up with some new adventures to take us on, or some new project to work on."

Hiccup smiled.

"And look where you have brought us! Dragon's Edge is amazing! I've never made a better decision in my life." She said, assuredly.

"I'm glad. I just wanted you to know… it means a lot to me that you are here." Hiccups cheeks went pink. He didn't know where all this honesty had come from!

There was a silence. The beach was growing dim, as the fire started running out of juice. Hiccup was relaxed. He closed his eyes and started being lulled into a stupor by the warm breeze and the quiet ripple of the waves. The occasional cry of laughter and the sound of flapping dragon wings comforted him.

"Hiccup?"

"Hm?" He replied, absently.

"I wanted to apologise."

Hiccup's eyes flashed open. "What? Why?"

Astrid hesitated. "For earlier today… well, yesterday now, I guess. When we were on the beach…"

 _Oh no._ Hiccup thought. _I had just forgotten about that. Why is she bringing it up? So embarrassing._

"No, I'm sorry." He said as he turned his head to look at her. "I-I misread… I—"

Astrid was shaking her head. "No, Hiccup. Don't apologise, you did nothing wrong."

"But you didn't want to. I made you uncomfortable and I… I feel like a-a darned muttonhead." He looked away, back to the sky. He didn't want to talk about this. He thought, maybe, they could just go on and forget it.

There was a short silence before Astrid said very softly, as if she had been hurt "But it's not that I didn't want to…"

Hiccup heard the words echo in his head.

 _What did she just say?_

Hiccup opened his mouth, then closed it again — bereft of speech.

"It all happened so fast, and then, you were there and… and well and I chickened out. I ran away like a coward." she said, bitterly. "The viking girl who couldn't kiss a boy."

Hiccup laughed and turned his, now warm, gaze toward her. "Astrid! Don't be absurd. You are the bravest viking I know—. Well, maybe save my father, but…"

Astrid looked up through her lashes, with an unsure expression. "I mean, I've only ever kissed you…you know, like a child. I've never… I don't know how to… do it. S-so I ran away." Even in the faint light, Hiccup could tell she was bright pink.

"Hey," He said, putting a friendly hand on her shoulder. "If it makes you feel better, I've never done it either, so I'm just as new to it as you are."

Astrid looked doubtful. "Never?"

"Never! Who would I have done that with? Ruffnut? I shudder to even think…" Astrid laughed but she couldn't help but think of the time they had found Heather. Hiccup had offered her his own bed. Anything might have happened behind closed doors.

Hiccup must have read her mind somehow. "And well… Heather is not my type." He added shortly.

There was another silence where they looked at eachother. All this talk about kissing, and Hiccup suddenly felt his need to kiss Astrid again, but he held himself back this time. He didn't want to misread her again and have an issue all over again.

Yet he couldn't help but think how beautiful she looked in the reddish light, that was cast over them by the dying embers. Their eyes were locked in a gaze. Hiccup was half hoping she might make a move or somehow tell him it was okay to do what he wanted to do. She said nothing. He waited even longer for her. _Say something, Astrid._ He inwardly pleaded for her to say something but he decided that he must have been waiting in vain.

Disappointed, Hiccup started to remove his hand from her shoulder but Astrid reacted fast and held it there. Hiccup started to feel almost a little fed up. He didn't like being messed around. Did she want him or not?

"I-I won't chicken out this time." she whispered, so quietly that Hiccup was sure he mustn't have heard it. Yet she began to guide his hand, slowly, from her shoulder, down, over her bare rib cage to her waist. She closed her eyes and tried to memorise the feel of his fingers grazing her skin. Opening her eyes, she moved herself closer to his body, steadily. She was determined, yet her ragged breath gave her away. She was nervous too.

"Ar-Are you sure?" Hiccup asked, as he rubbed his thumb back and forth over her firm abdomen. He didn't believe this was real, this was _actually_ happening.

Astrid nodded and wriggled a little closer to him on the skins, eyes always on his. She placed one hand under his neck and another on his arm. Hiccup could feel her breath on his face. Both teenagers had begun to tremble slightly.

There was a pause— a great moment of anticipation.

Hiccup leant down, to take away the distance between them, and their lips touched.

At first the kisses they shared were short, soft, and shy. The two vikings were a bit timid at first. yet it was still breathtaking Hiccup held her. It must have finally sunk in that this was _actually_ happening and the kisses became longer and more playful. Her lips parted and their tongues entered each others mouths. Hiccup could feel her ragged breath, mixing with his.

 _Gods._ Hiccup thought to himself.

Astrid's arms reached further for him and her hand snaked itself into his hair and he pulled her closer, so that their half-naked bodies were pressed together. Astrid thought how stupid she was to have rejected this the day before. It was one of the sweetest experiences of her life, she never wanted to let Hiccup go.

Hiccup pulled away to share a warm smile with her and then slowly started planting kisses on her neck and down her jaw line, back to her mouth. Beneath his lips, he could feel Astrid smiling through her kisses, which made him very happy. They were in their own private Valhalla. There was nothing else in this moment, besides them. _I'm kissing Astrid Hofferson!_ Hiccup thought wildly.

Regrettably, their moment in Valhalla was suddenly ripped away from them, when footsteps and voices, coming over the sand, reached their ears.

The two vikings tore away from one another as if they had been yanked apart by some invisible force. Astrid sat up hurriedly and started fixing her hair. She put on a very fake, warm smile as the others approached the camp fire, with their party of dragons.

Hiccup lay back on his back, with his hands behind his head, looking very relaxed and genuinely pleased with himself. To hide his satisfaction from the others, he attempted to wear a serious expression however he just couldn't stop himself from grinning, ear to ear.

The others filed into camp, Snotlout ignorantly kicking up sand as he passed.

"I see you all had fun out there?" Astrid asked, obviously trying to act as if there was nothing going on.

The twins whooped and there was a murmur of cheerful agreement from the others.

"Umm…Why are you sharing skins? _Gross._ " said Snotlout. "Hiccup is always covered in dragon saliva. I would never let him touch my stuff." Astrid shrugged. "You can always come share _my_ yak skin, though, Astrid. I'm _clean_." He gestured to his manky, old skin on the sand.

"Oh yeah, besides the fact that you sit on a dragon every day that is covered in kerosene gel!" retorted Astrid. Snotlout threw his arms up defensively and then went hand settled down with Hookfang.

Hiccup didn't like the way Snotlout was talking to Astrid and he looked at her, eyebrows knit together. She shook her head. He supposed it was normal, ignorant Snotlout behaviour. Yet, it still displeased him.

The newcomers all settled on to their skins, looking very cold and wet. They edged themselves close to the hot embers to warm up.

"What were you guys doing on the beach?" Asked Fishlegs genuinely.

"Oh just chatting… nothing really." lied Astrid. The others didn't seem to care or wonder that much, but Tuffnut eyed them off, knowingly. Hiccup wished they didn't have to lie to their friends about what was really happening up on the beach. But he supposed lying was easier than having to awkwardly tell the truth. So he went with it.

"Okay gang!" He said, in an authoritative voice, sitting up. "I want to meet you all at the stables at mid morning tomorrow for training." The others all burst into complaints. Even Astrid whined

Hiccup, scratched the back of his head, surprised at the sudden outburst of disagreement.

"Please, no. We will be useless." said Ruffnut in a pleading tone. "It's so late and I have definitely drank too much mead. _Please, Hiccup_. Another day off."

There was a choir of agreeing tones. Even the dragons kicked up.

"I'm not coming!" Snotlout protested. "Hookfang and I are boycotting training tomorrow." He crossed his arms, defiantly, at Hiccup.

"Okay! Okay! No training." Hiccup threw up his arms in exasperation and lay back down, defeated.

The others seemed pretty pleased. With no training to worry about the next day, they could expect a good nights sleep out under the stars.

Quiet fell over the camp.

Hiccup was laying, again, facing the sky with his hands behind his head. Toothless had come and curled up beside him on the sand and was already half snoring. It had been a big day. Come to think of it, Hiccup was probably not fit for training in the morning either. His stomach churned a bit as he felt it digesting the mead and that measly mutton leg.

He remembered Astrid, laying next to him. He wished he could hold her all night.

He glanced over at her. She was laying on her stomach, using her hands as a head rest. She was watching him.

They shared a silent, surreptitious smile.

He rolled over to face her, on his side. He held out his hand on the sand and she took it.

The fire had dimmed down into darkness and they drifted off into oblivion. Together.

* * *

 **Hey Guys!**

 **Thanks for following my RTTE story! I didn't really have much else of this story to write about. So I think this story is finished now. Unless any of you can come up with any ideas that could be in another chapter, PM me or leave a suggestion in the review box. I have also made some art of the highlights of this story that I will be posting on my tumblr page. So go check it out. Find the link on my FF profile page.**

 **Thanks so much for all the support and maybe i'll get bored and write another one some time.**

 **Cheers xx**


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